Goldman gets nod to invest Rs200 crore

Mumbai: The Indian government on Thursday approved the proposals of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the world’s largest securities firm, to invest Rs200 crore to offer asset management and other financial services in the country.

India’s Foreign Investment Promotion Board approved Goldman’s plans to offer investment advisory and portfolio management services, and to set up a trustee company for a mutual fund, the government said in an emailed statement. The New York-based securities firm began offering stock-brokering services in India in January, a month after receiving a licence that also allowed it to conduct investment banking.

The benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange, the Sensex, has risen 39% since 1 January. Assets managed by mutual funds in India have more than doubled to Rs4.75 trillion from Rs2 trillion in the past two years, as the Sensex doubled to a record over the same period, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Overseas funds have invested almost $20 billion (Rs79,000 crore) in the nation’s stocks and bonds this year, compared with $8.9 billion for all of 2006, according to data on the website of the market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India.